FAQ

Pre-Sale Questions

Answer: Yes, just email us directly for a shipping quote. If you are ordering a Berkey or British Berkefeld Unit by itself or with other Berkey or British Berkefeld BRAND accessories ONLY then you may go ahead and order through our website directly using the $7.50 postage even if you are outside New Zealand. Please contact us first regarding other brands. If you are in the USA, please contact us first as some brands may be better purchased directly from within the USA.

Answer: No, we specialise in high quality gravity, portable and personal filtration systems like Berkey, British Berkefeld and Seychelle (Fill2Pure) which do not require tap water pressure, plumbing or electricity.

Black Berkey and British Berkefeld

Answer: Super Sterasyl Ceramic Filters remove pathogenic bacteria, cysts, organic chemicals, chlorine and reduce sediment, turbidity and particulate. Black Berkey Filters do this AND remove lead, MTBEs and other heavy metals. Both filters have similar life span and require similar cleaning.

Black Berkey filters remove the most contaminants. Super Sterasyl Ceramic are more durable for travel, but filter a bit more slowly than the Black Berkey. Both are more practical, effective, longer lasting and more durable than the competition.

Answer: The Berkey does not remove beneficial minerals which the body needs whereas an RO system does. Drinking de-mineralised over a long period of time can actually have adverse health effects. Additionally an RO system does not remove Pathogenic bacteria unless UV light is added to the system and even then, bacteria can collect in other areas. Overall the Berkey is also far cheaper and requires far less maintenance than an RO system.

Answer: About 11,356 litres per filter. They are self-sterilising and are re-cleanable. Under normal usage they can generally be used for 3 to 4 years+ making them far more economical than most other systems.

Answer: BIOSAFE® is Seychelle’s exclusively licensed effective antimicrobial polymer filter covering that physically disrupts a contaminant organism’s cell membrane, thereby reducing microbial contamination by four logs or 99.99%.
BIOSAFE® is safe, non-toxic and non-leaching. It is EPA approved with tests performed under NSF standards. BIOSAFE® patented technology has proven to be effective against bacteria, fungi (mould and mildew), yeast, algae and certain viruses. BIOSAFE® is colourless, tasteless, and odourless and has an indefinite shelf life.

Answer: The Fast-flow filter reduces and removes contaminants up to 99.99% including; aesthetics, microbiological, viruses, diseases, chemicals and dissolved solids. It is designed to have an extremely easy flow rate.

The advanced filter adds an iodinated resin barrier to this which provides additional protection against viruses and bacteria to 99.9999%. The advanced filter is recommended for 3rd world travel or extreme survival use (They are currently used by military and humanitarian organisations in 3rd World environments).

Answer: The advanced filter works best in a squeezable bottle so the stainless steel bottles come with a Fast-flow filter which is still very strong and quite adequate for Australia, New Zealand and similar world regions. However, an advanced replacement filter can be purchased separately. It will work in a stainless steel filter bottle, but the flow rate will be reduced by 25% to 30% due to the fact that the bottle is not squeezable.

Answer: All Seychelle products are BPA free; are non-toxic and do not leach. The plastic bottles are made from only FDA approved # 4 and # 5 plastics and food-grade materials; The stainless steel bottles are made from 304 stainless steel.

Answer: When not using for an extended period, flush chlorinated water through the filter and allow to dry thoroughly with top cap removed. You may remove the filter and wash the bottle separately. Take care when removing the standard filter from the 700ml and 500ml bottles when wet as this filter doesn’t have filter casing and are more fragile when wet. Reassemble and store.